Justin Baldoni’s publicist Jennifer Abel claims he is ‘pompous’ and needs to be humbled in leaked texts
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Jennifer Abel, the publicist of actor Justin Baldoni, has been accused of making disparaging remarks about her client, calling him “pompous” and stating that he “needs to be humbled", in leaked text messages.
Abel, who is facing a breach of contract lawsuit filed by her former employer, Stephanie Jones, reportedly criticized the 'It Ends With Us' star while allegedly orchestrating a smear campaign against his co-star, Blake Lively, to boost Baldoni's public image, according to court documents filed on Tuesday, December 24.
Publicist Jennifer Abel criticizes Justin Baldoni's movie campaign in leaked texts
Jennifer Abel wrote in a text message sent on January 14, 2024, “I can’t stand [Baldoni]. He’s so pompous. A men’s retreat during release, is he crazy?”
The text further read, “And being off the grid for the summer because he’s just so overworked… like calm down. You’re not that important and nobody gives a s**t how hard your life is.”
The messages were among a series of communications included in the lawsuit filed on Tuesday by Stephanie Jones, CEO of Joneswork and Abel's former employer.
In another message sent on the same day, Abel allegedly wrote: “He doesn’t need a retreat. He needs to be humbled. When this movie flops, he’s going to try to blame every person around him for it.”
“He may fire us because even if we put together an amazing campaign, it’s not going to change the fact that he’s so unlikable and unrealistic as a leading man,” Baldoni's publicist allegedly wrote in another text message.
She further said, “There’s no chemistry with him and Blake, you and I both know that she will be resistant to promote this movie, and press will be reluctant to do anything with Justin without Blake being part of it. So there. Those are my thoughts.”
Lawsuit claims Jennifer Abel implemented 'aggressive smear campaign'
The lawsuit further claims that Jennifer Abel took documents from Jonesworks to establish her own public relations firm. It also asserts that Jones, who had previously been Justin Baldoni’s publicist, was removed from representing him and his film studio, Wayfarer, during the 'It Ends With Us' campaign.
Furthermore, the suit alleges that Abel, with the assistance of crisis expert Melissa Nathan, “secretly coordinated with Baldoni and Wayfarer to implement an aggressive media smear campaign against Baldoni’s film co-star [Blake Lively],” without Jones' knowledge.
Jones claims that Abel and Nathan were driven to execute the alleged smear campaign by “avarice” and “not any sincere appreciation for Baldoni,” further noting that Abel’s text messages reveal her contempt for her client, Daily Beast reported.
In a separate exchange of text messages between Abel and an unnamed individual on January 13, 2024, the publicist referred to a kissing scene between Baldoni and Lively in the film as “so cringey".
When the other person responded with, “Blake was probably grossed out too,” Abel reportedly replied, “Yeah and filed a cease and desist.”
Justin Baldoni's lawyer refutes allegations in Blake Lively’s lawsuit
Blake Lively recently filed a lawsuit against Justin Baldoni, accusing him of sexual harassment, and alleging that his public relations team, including Jennifer Abel and Melissa Nathan, orchestrated a smear campaign against her.
Bryan Freedman, who represents Baldoni, Abel, and Nathan, strongly denied the accusations in Lively's suit, stating in a statement that the suit is "completely false, outrageous, and intentionally salacious".
He further called it "yet another desperate attempt to ‘fix’ [Lively’s] negative reputation which was garnered from her own remarks and actions during the campaign for the film."
In a separate statement to the Hollywood Reporter, Freedman also responded to the leaked text messages included in Lively's complaint, which suggested that Abel and Nathan were allegedly celebrating the negative press surrounding Lively during the promotional campaign for 'It Ends With Us'.
“Jonesworks was the PR company contractually responsible to promote and protect Wayfarer and Justin. Our investigation has determined that on August 21st, Jonesworks utilized a lawyer and security guard to take possession of Wayfarers confidential information through confiscation of Jen Abel’s phone,” Freedman remarked.
“We are continuing to investigate the use of that confidential information but demands are being made to Stephanie Jones and Leslie Sloan and once we obtain the evidence, anyone actively involved in any possible connection with this abhorrent conduct will be sued into oblivion.”
